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I’ve been doing a spectacular amount of hemming and hawing over this post. There’s the, “Is it too late to talk about eggplants and tomatoes?” question, as it is well into October and eggplants are so… late summery. But there are still a ton of eggplants and tomatoes at the markets, likely due to this warm fall we’ve been having. Although they may not be the perky specimen that first appeared in August, they are absolutely perfect for soup. Then there’s the “Ugh, SOUP” issue wherein I have to admit that I find soup kind of dull. Sure, I’ve got a slew of soup recipes in the archives that I find interesting, but still, the vast majority of soups out there to be either too salty, too watery, cream bombs (I’d rather save my heavy cream to top pie, thank you very much) or to taste like limp, boiled vegetables. And finally, there’s the fact that this soup is excellent the way it is but with endless potential for tweaking, and who wants a slightly unfinished recipe? But then, thank goodness, I said this to myself: “Zzzzz!” and also “pbbbblt!” Because if I put myself to sleep with all of this hand-wringing, I can only imagine how few of you will make it past paragraph one.

So here’s how this soup began: My mother gushed a couple weeks ago about an eggplant soup from, of all places, a casino in Atlantic City. Eggplant soup! At a casino! Worth talking about! Who knew? And so I dug through my recipe bookmarks and found one from an old Bon Appetit that sounded just right, with a few steps that would save it from many of the aforementioned soup evils. By roasting the eggplant, tomatoes, garlic and onion first, you’d deepen their flavors before throwing them in a stock bath. And although the original recipe called for a whole cup of cream, the head notes suggest you can skip it entirely, although I had no desire to do a silly thing like that. In my experience, it only takes a modicum of cream to make a soup taste especially lush, and that cream can go a long way towards anchoring the flavors that otherwise get a little lost in the … slosh of it all. Too much cream, and the flavors are held at a distance while you drown in richness, and I’d much rather save that for Things That Involve Cheese Or Chocolate.

The results were pleasing, and my parents enjoyed it, but it wasn’t exactly right. (Obviously next time I’ll have to insist my mother carry specimen cups in her purse when visiting a casino. Which, every time I read this back to myself, sounds like an even more ominous idea.) The original was chunkier, which can easily be adjusted by simply not fully pureeing the soup. But then — quite after the fact but I’ll give her a pass on it — she mentioned the spices. Which she couldn’t put a finger on but it doesn’t matter because I wasn’t listening anymore. (Nothing new! And yes, I’m already getting my adorable payback.) “Cumin!” I shouted over my mother’s talking. “Coriander!” I continued in this one-sided conversation. “A squeeze of lemon juice!” I rambled. On and on this went but I use AT&T and so of course by then my call had been dropped without me realizing it. Should I be concerned that my mom didn’t call me back?

Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange tomatoes, eggplant, onion and garlic on a large baking sheet, or two smaller ones if you, like me, have a tiny oven. Brush or drizzle vegetables with oil then roast them for 20 minutes, pausing only to remove the garlic cloves (the original recipe had you keep them in the whole time, and mine, sadly, burned) and returning the pans to the oven for another 25 minutes, until the remaining vegetables are tender and brown in spots. Remove from oven and scoop eggplant from skin into a heavy, large saucepan or soup pot. Add the rest of the vegetables, the thyme and the chicken or vegetable stock and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook until onion is very tender, about 45 minutes (mine took longer). Cool slightly.

Working in batches, puree soup in blender until it is as smooth as you’d like it to be. (Or, if you have an immersion blender, you can do this in the pot.) Back in the pot, add the cream and bring the soup back to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Serve in four bowls, sprinkled with goat cheese.

A spicier riff: As I mentioned above, if you like to play with spices, this soup has a lot of potential. The next time I make it, I might give it a spin with 1 to 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ground coriander and a pinch of red pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper added in with the broth. I might finish the soup with a squeeze of lemon juice and I might use feta, which has a stronger flavor than the soft chevre that I used. If you add any spices or made any changes, I’d love to hear what you came up with in the comments.

I know what you mean about late October tomatoes. I made a tomato tart yesterday thinking, “Isn’t it too late for tomatoes?,” but yet my tomatoes actually smelled and tasted like tomatoes and the basil I used was flavorful, too!
I love the idea of roasting the eggplant in the soup.

I made eggplant soup years ago. A recipe from a well known chef. I had trust in him. The soup was awful! And I ended up throwing it all away–no one wanted to eat it.
But I trust you, Deb. You know waht’s good. I’ll try your BA recipe.
(And it better be good! :) )

Love this!! I opened a small cafe in June, specialize in homemade soups and Roasted Eggplant Soup is one of the most requested (honestly, it surprises me!). The only changes I make are (1) I add balsamic vin. when roasting the vegetables, and (2) I top with either feta and/or homemade garlic (multigrain) croutons. Yum!! :)

Marina — I totally agree that the color is bleeeh. This only added to my hemming and hawing over the enticement of this recipe. Alas, it’s soup season and this is a good one. And the next post will sure make up for it in pretty power. In fact, I’m snacking on part of it now. :)

Linda — I didn’t use homemade. But I just remembered I had some in the freezer, d’oh. I am not very “with it” these days.

While this sounds flavorful and fall-ish, IMHO the visual is not that appealing. This is not at all due to your photography which is always fantastic. It’s just so, “gravy-gray-brown.” Maybe the less pureed version would have more splashes of color? I am going to experiment with texture & spices because my sons & husband have recently become eggplant fans and I’d love to rock their world with a yummy soup!

Deb, I never thought to make soup with eggplant! I’ve never had anything like this before, but it’s genius.
I love eggplant and this looks amazing. You always amaze me with your ideas.
Thanks for this. What a great fall soup!

Deb, I love eggplant! While using eggplant in soup would not come to mind first when thinking about eggplant recipes, I have some Japanese eggplants from my CSA box…do you think they would work as well as the larger variety you used? If not, I could always go with my Plan A…ratatouille!

This is great! I have eggplants to use and I am pretty sick of the same things I’ve been making all summer. Now that it is definitely soup weather this is a great way to use the end of season eggplants and tomatoes from the CSA. Thank you! If anyone tries a spice variation I would love to hear about it.

Sounds interesting (and tasty)!
There is another soup which uses roasted eggplant in the Ottolenghi cookbook – their version seems a lot simpler, using mainly eggplants, broth and lemon (there’s heavy cream too, but only about 1/4 cup of it, and I have a feeling it can be exchanged with yoghurt). Actually, I have a feeling you will really love this book – lost of recipes that are not obvious but not overly complicated, a lot of respect for vegetables, and a lovely combination of Middle Eastern / Mediterranean and European flavours. In our house it’s become pretty much the cookbook bible ever since we got it last Passover. Check it out!

Yael — I am completely obsessed with the cookbook and his column. I’m eying a column recipe for next week, even!

Beth — I left the tomato skins on and never noticed them in the soup, but see no reason they can’t be ditched.

Kate — [Tangent alert!] Ugh, I will be more impressed by their low turnover statistics when other carriers have iPhones. Right now, I’m just more willing to put up with an average of one to two drops per phone call (worse now with the 4G) rather than give up the awesome phone. With video that’s better than the Flip. We all want some Jacob video one of these days, don’t we?

Ach, should’ve read the recipe before jumping in with a comment, since it seems yours has cream in it as well. So, yeah, quite similar, but more on the simple side, emphasizing the eggplant. I have to admit I haven’t tried their eggplant soup yet, but it looks good, and I trust this cookbook (the only soup recipe of theirs I tried so far was a red lentil and Swiss chard soup, which was excellent).

This looks like a wonderful recipe. I always get good ideas from what you do. Unfortunately I’m the only non-picky eater in my house and I make everything in small doses playing with measurements. There’s plenty of beautiful eggplants around my area so I’ll be trying this. Unfortunately, my plants did not do well this year.

I don’t have a lot of experience with cooking and eating eggplant, but from what I’ve learned, soup is probably the best use of it. It’s so gooshy. Maybe I overcooked it, maybe it was too overripe to saute, but I was only impressed with the flavor. I agree, cumin or corriander would suit this soup as I read it. Thanks, Deb.

An idea for making it look prettier: Instead of putting cheese onto it, top each bowlful with artistic swirls or clouds of cream, or yoghurt (goat yoghurt!) or lemony tahina and sprinkle generously — more artistry — with choppedf fresh herbs (chives, parsley, basil, mint or cilantro if you like it, depending on what spices you have used), and/or croutons and/or toasted walnuts or pine nuts.

This is offtopic, but I wanted to tell you that my daughter in grad school at Northwestern, used your blog at the top of her list, in a research paper about the food and dining industry, specifically about how it has evolved. Her discussion ranged from restaurants in general, to the newest ways ‘foodies’ get their information about dining establishments, recipes, and such. Just thought this would ‘make your day’! (and she didn’t even know your blog was my favorite in the food category!).

See, now, I love soup. Anything I can eat with a spoon is comfort food, well, that and cookies. Which means I really need to control how much comfort I need! This one goes in the file for next year’s summer garden.

For those concerned with the color/presentation, there are a couple of easy things to do to offset the brown (being a devout aficionado of mushroom soup, I don’t actually have a problem with the color). Hold back a small portion of the tomatoes after roasting, dice them, and then gently mix into the post-pureed soup to provide some touches of red. Or very lightly drizzle some heavy cream or creme fraiche in a swirl or zig zag pattern across the surface and top with a little bit of fresh chopped parsley or cilantro.

For a similar version of this soup with the chunkier texture and spice that your mum was looking for (with the addition of crispy chickpeas) you could cross-reference with this recipe: http://localkitchen.wordpress.com/2010/09/20/roasted-tomato-eggplant-soup/, although I think it’s a bit more on the tomato-ey side. I haven’t yet made it, but my work colleague gave me a taste at lunch, and it was delicious. Definitely not boring. And I know what you mean about soup. I once read a food columnist (name & publication now escaping me) who wrote about the inexplicable popularity of butternut squash soup in such a way as to sum up my general feelings: every bite was exactly the same and the whole thing was so insipid it made him want to scream. A tad over-the-top, but…

I am envisioning tahini along with the spices you mentioned. I’d skip the cream, because I think the tahini would add nice texture along as well as providing a nuttier, richer flavor. Sounds wonderful!

This sounds like Eggplant Caviar soup to me. Eggplant caviar is one of my favorite things on earth. And. I noticed you have a Staub dutch oven. Beautiful, gorgeous, to die for. And. Deb, you have the world’s cleanest oven range. I just checked the mirror. I’m so envious I’ve turned green, chartreuse green.

I worked at a restaurant back in the ’90’s where a roasted eggplant and garlic soup was one of our regular soups. I just loved it! We used carrots instead of tomatoes. If I remember correctly, the chef topped it with a drizzle of creme fraiche. I make it at least once a year. It’s fantastic with good buttery, garlicky croutons. The goat cheese is a fantastic idea.

I’m always on the lookout for new and unique soup ideas, so thanks for the inspiration to try an eggplant one! And please don’t worry to much about seasonal produce, because a good number of readers are in the southern hemisphere and these things are finally coming into season (well, tomatoes aren’t quiiite here yet…) I found myself looking through your archives for asparagus recipes yesterday, after I suddenly realized “oh yeah… October in New Zealand means asparagus!” Hard to get used to coming from the US :)

I’m finally realizing (through reading your fab blog) how important roasting vegetables and other ingredients is, before adding them to their soup, stew, etc. I agree that the color of the soup isn’t the best, but when it has a deep rich flavor, the color doesn’t matter. This reminds me a lot of pea soup – drinking a congealed green substance doesn’t seem appealing until you take a taste, and a sniff. Et voila.

Where was this soup when I was going through my vegetarian stint back in August! But then, remember August? How sticky and hot and awful it was? I think a thick soup is perfect for these much more mellow Fall days!

On that note, Deb, while I was reading about your conversation with your mother, it occurred to me that a fitting spice for this recipe–what I probably would have exclaimed, while talking to her–must be garam masala (available in Indian/Pakistani grocery stores or, which you can make yourself, at home (http://tinyurl.com/2bohgz))! A week ago today, we were devouring your delicious Mushroom Lasagna; tonight, I do believe it’ll be Roasted Eggplant Soup. Thank you!

I had a crash course on eggplants while in Italy and am now completely sold on them in any form…thanks for this recipe, I’m going to give it a go! Love the pic of the escapee…he is so dang cute! xo, Nan

Just a few days ago I bought some eggplant and have ever since been mulling over what to turn them into. Always seeming to find the solution on your site, I plopped myself down in front of the computer to google search your site for any eggplant recipes I could unearth. You can only imagine the smile that bubbled over into a laugh when the home page brought up this delightful recipe.

Eugh, I know what you mean about soup being too creamy/rich/boring. I hated soup for years, I only got over it when I had a great one made with lentils, pumpkin and Malay curry powder. Ugly, but absolutely delicious. No cream in sight, which was a relief. Like someone already commented, yogurt is a great substitute for cream in soup – it does add something different but to be honest, I prefer it. The cream of tomato soup on this site, with yogurt instead of cream and a good glug of booze is pretty much my soup nirvana. I do have a whacked palate but I have it on good authority that soup made this way is indeed delicious.

In my attempt to eat more vegetables soup is one of the best ways to go. The entire year can be my soup season and here we get fat eggplants throughout. A great recipe using so little cream, definitely a must try.

Which reference to your mention of something chocolate or cheese, I hope there’ll be a chocolate dessert recipe soon… Hah! So much for my attempt of healthier eating right?

SO glad you decided to post that! I had a bunch of shriveling eggplant from our CSA & tomatoes from my yard about to go to waste. I made it, and it’s delish! I used homemade chicken broth I had frozen and omitted the thyme b/c I don’t like it. I just seasoned it in my bowl with a dash each of cumin & chipotle chili powder. I also tried it with cumin & cloves which was great if you’re in the mood for something sweeter. Didn’t have any cheese. Thanks for a great recipe!

Your little one is so big! What a great picture! I think the soup sounds lovely. I would bet the cream would be a give or take, pending. I have to say that your photos are so good… you can make a bowl of brown soup look devine.
Honestly, to die for! Thanks again, Deb, you rock!!!

This is an aside… and perhaps you stop reading your comments after number 88… but HOW DO YOU GET YOUR POTS AND PANS SO BEAUTIFUL and brand-spanking new appearing. Maddening. Like watching Martha Stewart where, until now, I have sworn she uses new All Clad cookwear each time she shoots a new segment. Tell me you do not do the same.

Perhaps, there is, in my kitchen, a lack of elbow grease.

Perhaps, and this is most likely, your husband has mad skills. Bravo to him!

definitely cumin and coriander! I would look at some recipes for the Indian dish of baingan bhartha, a slightly soupy eggplant dish which is incredibly flavorful, and see if the spices in that would be worth imitating.

I, too, have eggplant on the brain. We’re still getting a bounty of this beautiful vegetable from our CSA. Our favorite way to use it up is eggplant potato pizza: http://flamingobear.com/2010/10/eggplant-potato-pizza/ My 5 year old even asked for seconds! I’ll have to try your soup with our next box, which comes tomorrow.

This looks delicious, but I don’t think my farmshare is sending me any more eggplants. I am shocked that you don’t have an immersion blender given your commitment to one-bowl recipes whenever possible. I love my immersion blender with an almost unequaled Passion, and I hate washing the blender. :)

I found an eggplant last week for a dollar. A dollar! Usually they are $3.99 each. It’s skin was a little battered and bruised, but it baked up perfectly. I’m going to go back and see if they have some more on sale for this lovely-looking soup.

thank GOD for this recipe! i got my csa today and thought, OH NO! NOT MORE EGGPLANT! i have made everything you can make with eggplant and it has mostly been delicious and i’ve prided myself on NOT having made eggplant parmesan yet. but today i thought i was going to have to break down until i saw this recipe. thanks!

Great idea. I love roasted vegetables and soup season is just getting into full swing. As a note on my preferences regarding eggplant. Many years ago I ate at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Boston and ordered babaganoush – a standard enough dish. This version was particularly tasty. Why? Well, because the eggplant was not simply cooked, but cooked over fire. The cooking required the tough skin to become blackened which imparted a beautiful smokey flavor to the final product. I don’t have a fire in my kitchen. However, I find that turning the eggplant skin side up to the broiler and letting it blacken does the job nicely. Not so smokey as a fire, of course, but still great. IMO, the carbonized flavor would be terrific in this soup.

At one point during my 25 years in Indiana, land of brocolli/cheddar soup, I traveled to San Francisco, where over 10 days I had three different kinds of eggplant soup. What a great trip! I particularly remember that at Green’s Restaurant, the wonderful Ft. Mason vegetarian place. I’ve never attempted to make my own, but I will now. Thanks.

I love the look of this- have this thing though that whenever I serve soup for the husband aka The Hungry One he thinks it’s an appetizer and looks around for what’s next. Though, have been trying to get into meatless Mondays- and I think this one’s a keeper for that. Maybe a big pile of toast or goats cheese quesadillas would help fill the hole…

I find soups to be deliciously heartwarming and therefore am grateful you decided to post this recipe in the end. I adore the idea of roasting all the vegetables before putting them in the soup. It may not be a complicated or fancy recipe, but as a result I am sure many more of us will actually make it instead of just staring at the foodporn!

You are on the way of a wonderful recipe..I think I know where it went wrong. You should roast the aubergines whole under broil/ grill next time. After cooling peel the burnt crust, use the creamy, smoky, sweet flesh. Less tomato, no goat cheese for me. Don’t be so generous on cream, either. Try burnt butter with thyme on top just before serving.
Thrust me. I am Turkish. And our cuisine has hundreds of aubergine recipe including a jam :)

This recipe caught my eye! What about making the soup more like an Eggplant Parmesan. Spicing it up a bit with some red pepper flakes and italian seasonings, floating a crouton on top with some parmesan and maybe a dollop of pesto. Thyme pesto or some of the summerpesto from the freezer. I love your blog Thanks.

Ya-a-a-a-ay! My fridge is freakin’ FILLED with eggplant from our CSA, and if I make one more fried thing out of it I’m going to split my pants. This is so perfect – I can’t wait to experiment with the spices. Thanks so much – I’ll report back once I make it, probably tomorrow.

Berbere or garam masala. And I’d keep it pretty chunky, because pureed eggplant is just … pureed eggplant. I’m for skipping the cream altogether, particularly if it’s left chunky. On the other hand, I’ve had me some thin, watery (pureed) eggplant soups — ewww! and I looouvve eggplant — which cream definitely would have helped. I think I’m saying that eggplant soup needs to be really thick, almost baba ganoush-y, in order to be appealing to me. :D

My last crop of eggplants is ready to be picked and I am so over parmagiana and baba ganoush and Thai stir fries. I just saw a similar recipe in the Washington Post, goat cheese and all (check it out on line). After reading the recipe, I had the same revelation…too bland, with the only real seasoning being thyme. Since it was listed as a Mediterranean dish, I thought, why not go south a bit to Morocco and spice it up with Moroccan spices. You were spot on with cumin, red pepper and coriander, but a little (and I do mean little) cinnamon and all spice gave it that oh so right finish.

I know you may never read this but…. I wanted to let you know that I love your blog. I found it today and have enjoyed reading back till August. What I particularly like is that you use all the fun food that are in season. Peach shortbread on back to the blueberries. Thank you for your wonderful recipes and lovely pictures! I will be reading every week!

I, for one, am glad that, after all the hand-wringing, you decided to share this recipe. It looks like the perfect combination of healthy and hearty. The collage photo of vegetables roasting and pre-roasting is fantastic!

Boy, those tomatoes still look great. I recently put up 3 bushels of tomatoes that I picked at the (Grandma) Moses Farm in Eagle Bridge, New York, and got 101 one-cup Ziplock bags full to use all winter in sauces, stews, braises, etc.

And I LOVE eggplant. I make an “eggplant parmesan” adapted from Michael Schlow’s excellent book It’s About Time, which consists of slices of breaded, fried eggplant topped with a cold tomato salad, and the combination of hot and cold is delicious, and a Joyce Goldstein recipe for eggplant puree, which is especially good with stuffed mushrooms as two side dishes with grilled lamb.

I will try this soup soon because I think it will be a good addition to my repertoire.

Perfect timing indeed– just got 2 large eggplants delivered w/my last veggie delivery. I may be the only person alive who doesn’t care for goat cheese– anyone recommend a different cheese that would work?

Egglplants are still in season in northern california – we just got three big ones in our CSA box! We also got two large bright red peppers in our box, so we decided to substitute those for the tomatoes, which we didn’t have on hand. Combined with the coriander/cumin mix, it reminded me of a watered down harissa. But it was delicious nonetheless, a great appetizer course.

Poor eggplant. More people would like it if it didn’t turn that icky color. I’ve found most of our produce to be behind season this year including eggplants and just recently found little white ones. I’d never seen them before but figure we can’t go wrong stuffing them with rice, mushrooms, and spices for dinner tonight.

I just borrowed Sara Foster’s Market Cookbook from our library and liked the looks of her Roasted Eggplant and Red Pepper Soup (p 80) so was really surprised when I saw your recipe for and eggplant soup too!

Your receipe has me thinking …. I will try on a smaller scale and possibly mix in a bit of roated pumkin. Yet my bet fir the missing ingredient is cumin, in addition inside of the cream one could use sour cream. The sour cream will add a bit of tart with a richness and a little sour cream goes a long way. That way we could share the heavy cream on a tartlet or pie.

Re Ottolenghi – I am SO glad you know (and like) this book! Can’t wait to see which recipe of theirs you’ll share…
Have you tried the flourless two-texture chocolate cake, yet? I think it’s the best chocolate cake I had, and really love their simple little trick, too.
Have you tried the perdect-for-springtime haricot verts and snap pea salad with hazelnuts and orange zest? Or the artichokes with fava beans and peas and pink peppercorn? Or the Potatoes baked with Jerusalem artichoke and lemon and tomatoes and olives? Or… gosh, I better stop.

To date, my favorite use of eggplant was in a Craig Clairborne recipe for ratatouille (best at room temp.). Will have to give this a try since we are fast approaching soup and stew weather in the Midwest.

To follow up on my own comment (!), I tried this with the feta and it is DELICIOUS! Perfect combo–I highly recommend. I didn’t add the thyme, just cumin & red pepper. I did about 1.5 tsp of cumin and could have probably used a tad less, but the feta helps balance the spice. Thanks for the wonderful recipe and great photos!

I made this last night upon eyeballing the ingredients and realizing that I already had everything at home (this never happens). In addition to the fresh thyme (which I still can’t believe I had), I threw in cumin, red pepper flakes, a little cayenne, and then some smoked paprika too because there’s this moment that happens whenever I’m cooking something unfamiliar that I panic about blandness and proceed to add every spice in the cabinet to the pot. In this case, however, it worked out. I also topped it with feta instead of goat cheese. Without the cheese, the soup is nice, with it however, the experience is divine! Thanks for an awesome supper!

Awesome! This is almost my eggplant stew recipe except that I always add cumin, coriander and a cinnamon stick while it stews, as well as one or two dried red chiles, depending on my mood. I’ve tweaked this recipe over the years and sometimes use garbanzos in the stew as well. I would think this soup would nicely handle the above spices. Can’t wait to try this as these ingredients are ALWAYS in my frig/pantry.

I absolutely LOVE eggplant and want a bowl of this soup now! I’ve never had eggplant soup but I know I’ll enjoy it. I like the idea of tahini, and maybe a spoonful of sour cream or yoghurt on top. On a slightly different subject, since there have been such gorgeous tomatoes right in the grocery stores for months, how come you can’t get a decent on on your salad/sandwich in a restaurant? Big mystery to me. Jacob is adorable; in that escape picture he reminds me of the Little Prince having just fetched up on a strange planet!

Momcat — Oh, we should TALK. Seriously! I love a slice of tomato on my bagel, but I never order it in the winter, you know, because winter’s no time to eat tomatoes. But then summer comes and they’re still mealy and pale. It vexes me.

Bonnie — I always read comments. Thank you.

Erin — I used my immersion blender! I adore it.

Alex — My pots and pans are clean? Why thank you but I have All-Clad Master Chef 2 series for everyday use and can assure that they look terrible, almost irrevocably mottled, once they’ve been run through the dishwasher a few times. The insides are pretty easy to clean but the outsides, ick. (I’ve read it is some reaction with most dishwasher powders and aluminum, the same thing that’s made my roasting sheets that you see here look like death, despite being clean.)

I just made this soup and my husband and I loved it! We added a teaspoon or cumin, and a teaspoon of coriander. We didn’t have any fancy cheese, so we just used some shredded mozzarella and croutons. It was awesome! My husband isn’t a big soup fan, but he fought me for the last bits. Thanks for the great recipe.

I tried this tonight and it was great!!! I took the suggestion to add balsamic vinegar in the roasting, and also added the cumin, coriander, and (homemade) chili powder. I didn’t realize until I came back to comment that I forgot the cream. The soup was wonderful in my opinion. I may add cream to the leftovers just to see the difference!

Agreed. We did pretty much exactly as the last two readers did. I wanted it to stay more fresh than savory and only added 1/2 tsp of cumin, but the rest was the same (1tsp coriander and brushed with balsamic). We topped with feta and garlic croutons and I thought it was divine. Great texture and filling. I didn’t mind the color at all – but then I am a blended soup person and that tends to happen. :)

What if, instead of peeling the garlic, you just cut the top off a whole head and roasted it along with the veggies for the whole time? Whatever cloves you don’t want to put in the soup, just save to smear on bread or something. But I would pop the whole thing in, surely. Nothing touches the flavor of a whole roasted garlic head.

I’m much more a baker than a savoury cook, so I’d be way too lazy to try something as far-out (for me) as this, but the photo of the soup made me think immediately of brown lentil soup, made with brown lentils (obviously), rice for added creaminess, cumin, lemon juice, olive oil and parsley. Simply gorgeous in case you’d like to try that at some point.

Just made this and it is absolutely delicious! I added tachini instead of the cream and it gives it an amazing flavor combined with the coriander powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes as suggested by you Deb! Awesomeness.

I just made a roasted eggplant soup last week with chickpeas, lots of garlic and a nice crusty bread for dipping. That recipe was from the latest issue of Every Day Food magazine. I’ll have to give this one a try while I can still get my hands on more eggplants :)

Great recipe! I’ll try it out soon. I’m not much of a soup drinker, but lately the weather has been getting me in the mood. Kudos on your blog!, I also enjoy your baby food section. I have a 23 month old girl… I can relate soooo much! ;)

Wow! We tried this tonight with your recommended spices and the feta cheese….great! And this from one who rarely eats eggplant….thought I didn’t like it, but now I do! Many thanks, and this was a terrific way to use our CSA box ingredients. I’ll be passing it on to friends.

Another winner! This soup is outstanding. I used the balsamic and the cumin suggestions, and I cannot get enough of it. I’m just sad that the batch of soup was so small–I’ll definitely be making more (and definitely a double batch) next week. My one-year olds cannot get enough, either…the one who is slightly pickier eats each bite with an “mmmmm” sound. I didn’t grow up eating eggplant, but I’ve started cooking with it a bit over the past few years. The intensity with which I like it continues to surprise me. Also, I was pretty amazed by the miniscule amounts of salt and pepper it took to make this soup tasty. Thanks for the inspiration!

I had frozen some chicken stock that accidentally got a teaspoon or two of cinnamon in it when a jar of powdered cinnamon fell off the shelf into the stock pot. I was waiting for the right recipe to come along to use it. It was delicious in this. Thanks.

Deb, first — thank you! I love your blog and all the fabulous recipes. I made this exact soup a month or two ago and I myself did a ton of “hemming and hawing” over it. In fact for that very reason, the pictures never made it from flickr to my blog — I just couldn’t decide if I liked it enough or not. There definitely seemed to be “something” missing. I love the spice ideas you and other readers mentioned — I think I’ll have to try some of the ideas if I make this soup again.

I made this yesterday with a few alterations. It is absolutely amazing. I added 2 red peppers to the mix, and more garlic. ( I LOVE garlic) I coated everything with olive oil and a light coating of balsamic vinegar and pepper. Got my broth going and added the red pepper flakes, cumin, and Thyme. Once I could touch my veggies I cut them up and put them in the blender with some of the broth. Simmered for about another 20 minutes and served with chopped cilantro and feta. The red pepper helped with the coloring too. Love your recipes and pictures.

I made this soup tonight and loved it. Mine turned out more of a reddish-orange color than the regular cooked eggplant brown. I did not roast the garlic but used it instead to make taqliyya (minced garlic sauted with coriander and salt–a common addition to Middle Eastern soups), which I added after I pureed the soup. I also added 1.5 tsp cumin and used plain yogurt instead of cream, topped with feta. It was wonderful and got big compliments from my husband, who is not at all a soup person. I loved the texture with it fully pureed. I agree that tahina would also be a nice addition–considered it, but didn’t try. I may put a small spoonful in the leftovers tomorrow and see!

Wonderful!!! Loving this. I tried the substitutions – added cumin, coriander and finished with a dash of basalmic, cream and feta. Divine!!

One suggestion about the garlic burning. My first thought was to take the garlic, drizzle with oil and wrap in aluminum foil when roasting. I did this and it came out perfect. When I added it to the soup base in the pot, I just popped it right out of the skin.

I just finished making the veggie stock , and im about to make this soup im excited! its funny cuz before i read the things u were gonna try next time, just wen i was reading the ingredients i thought, jmm i bet this will taste better with feta, so i got that one :) aah cant wait!

Just made the soup… Love the taste… after i blended the ingredients i added some olive oil and added cumin, paprika n coriander powder and then added the blended ingredients… :) shud put ip up on my blog soon…

It’s cold as crap today in San Francisco, so this dish made the cut for tonight–I went with the goat cheese and the suggestion of coriander and cumin and a pinch of red pepper, topped with a spring of cilantro, and totally omitted the cream, and it was delicious! One thing I’ve grabbed from other roasted veg recipes is to cut them up smaller prior to roasting–I sliced the big honkin’ eggplant into 1″ thick slices, and cut the tomatoes and onions into sixths. This way, everything roasted/caramelized, and I didn’t need to take out the garlic for fear of burning. This also cuts down on the time required for the veg and stock to blend, but I doubt the picture would have turned out as lovely and graphic. Thanks for posting this recipe, and the other gem I paired with it: the gruyere crouton.

Excellent soup although the taste of my version was more tomato-ish than eggplant so next time I’ll use more eggplant or less tomatoes (or both). I mixed the goat cheese directly in the soup and left the totamto’s skins aside. Yummiiii!!!

I didn’t read all the comments so pardon me if I’m repeating – but this month’s issue of Food & Wine has a delicious-looking recipe for curried squash soup that might satisfy your craving for a more flavorful (and spicier) soup. Plus it uses winter veggies – hooray! I just have to get around to finding lemongrass…

Deb, Thanks so much for posting this late-season recipe! I was having the exact same furious inner dialogue just the other day when my own blog featured an herb-roasted vegetable salad. There are still beautiful produce items like zucchini, eggplants, tomatoes and peppers available at farmers markets and I sometimes hesitate to use them because they seem “too summery” for October.

I guess that (like you) I’ve embraced the “fresh, local, seasonal” ethic to such an extent that I catch myself marking food-seasons by the calendar instead of availability. It’s so silly when you stop to think about it. By way of breaking the cycle – I think I’ll make this yummy for soup for dinner tonight!

Great recipe! I made this last night and in addition to adding the suggested coriander and cumin during the simmer phase I roasted a fennel bulb with the other vegetables in the oven. A great recipe. This will go in the keeper file for sure.

Hi Deb! I know you always have hundreds of comments to sift through, but I just wanted to tell you that I made this soup this weekend, and after the first bite, post-cream and feta cheese addition, I darn near shed a tear. It’s THAT GOOD. At first it seemed like a lot of work, but most of the time was inactive, plus it made my apartment smell really, really good. Thank you for this.

Cheesy as it may be, I also just wanted to say thank you, period. I follow SK religiously and you are the FIRST place I go when planning a dinner party menu. Your sensibility about food really resonates with me, and everything is written in such a friendly and familiar manner. I’m practically never disappointed with your posts, and everything Deb-approved I try comes out great. You’re even part of our daily vernacular – I made a dish for a friend the other night. She took a bite, and said, “Mmmm… Smitten Kitchen??” “Yup… Smitten Kitchen.” “Niiice,” she responded. “Deb does it again.”

In the recipe, it says “small” onion, and you commented that you used a “medium” one. Could you put a table somewhere listing what you consider to be a small, medium, or large onion by weight– or volume chopped? I know that such things are to taste, particularly in soup, but a range would be nice. Same thing with potatoes (a large russet is way different from a large waxy all purpose potato, etc). Not that I mind giving things a few tries– but our palates are wonderfully similar, so there is less guessing with your recipes than those from many other sources for me. Thanks for being a constant source of kitchen inspiration.

I made this soup last night and it was so easy and delicious! I definitely added all the “suggested” spices, plus an extra roasted onion AND… A generous glug of red wine at the end which really put it over the top! Now I have it for lunch all this week with some delicious crumbled feta cheese… looking forward to lunch every day!

re dishwasher powders and aluminum: if there’s acidic ingredients in it, it does interact with aluminum. Same as tomatoes, vinegars, etc, when cooked in aluminum pots and pans. It affects the taste and discolors the pans.

Nurit — Very interesting. I suspect I’m not the only one with aluminum roasting pans that look 100 years old after being washed three times. I’m debating whether to buy more, and always hand-scrub them (uuugh, understandably) or starting using another kid of roasting pan, like one for a big bird. But boy-o, that’s a lot of heft to roast a sweet potato for the baby.

I made this soup yesterday and I added some roasted red peppers. I didn’t have any cream in the house, so I just used fat free milk. I also did not put any cheese on it. I used croutons instead. It came out really good. The roasted red peppers gave it a really sweet taste. My husband said that I should definitely make it again. I think you could try all sorts of variations with this soup. I love your column!

I really enjoyed this soup although I changed it up quite a bit. I added a red bell peppe, a fennel bulb, balsamic vinegar, red wine and basil. With all the additions I forgot the onion. Finished with lemon juice, a touch ov lemon juice and topped with feta, chicken sausage, and fresh basil.

My report: made this soup tonight, using the cumin and coriander, and also a French feta I found at my store. I served it with a nice baguette. It was yummy! Thanks for this. I’ll be sure to make it again, and may even add some more to it (like carrots roasted as well — just maybe one to start.)

The soup tastes delicoious! I made it today!
I have a question, though. You say in your recipe to use the eggplant without skin – why? Is it because the soup will have those tiny dark flakes from the skin after being puréed? I was about to do as stated, when I thought “no, you can eat the whole vegetable, why waste food, if it tastes good?” And I put the whole thing in my pot. It came out great! I really am in love with this soup!
I used goat brie cheese as topping, which had a spicy taste to it. Yummy!

Back when I was living with my mom, she had a big aluminun pot we used to cook – it always turned an ugly shade of grey after cooking something with tomatoes, or wine, etc.
What about those heavier duty baking sheets from Willian Sonoma and such? they are more expensive though…

Reporting back:
Made this last night and Loved it!
Added 1 tea cumin and pinch of cardamom. It added lots of flavor but then I did not see how heavy cream will go together with these more Middle Eastern flavors so I left it out.
Husband added goat cheese to his. I liked mine as is.
Will use ½ cup less broth next time to make it thicker. (BTW, I found a quick and easy way to make chicken stock! Check it out: http://www.familyfriendlyfood.com/2010/04/invest-in-stock/ )
Yogurt sounds great as does feta – but I really like it just like that, simple.
What a compensating, healing experience that was after that horrible eggplants soup from years ago that left an ugly scar. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I just finished cleaning up after making/eating this and I am seriously considering going back into the fridge for seconds. After reading some of the comments I added about 3 tablespoons of tahini instead of cream and probably a teaspoon of cumin. I also used 3 different color heirloom tomatoes (bright red, dark red/maroon, and yellow/orange) which I think brightened up the color of the soup. It looked more like roasted tomato soup. I topped it with crumbled queso fresco (because that’s all I had on hand) and some cilantro. Delicious! Thanks for sharing, I love eggplant :)

Hi! I’m new to your website & have enjoyed it a lot. I made this soup and LOVED it. I didn’t have access to good fresh tomatoes so subbed 2 (15 oz) cans fire-roasted tomatoes and added the cumin, coriander and cayenne you suggested. It really was yummy & I’ll make it again soon. Thanks!

I didn’t read all the 197 comments on this soup, so maybe some of my ideas are already up there somewhere. But this is how I made it:

Roast veggies as suggested in the recipe (although I was more generous with the olive oil and I also seasoned the eggplants with some dried garlic); meanwhile, chop up 1 large carrot, 1 thick slice of celery root, 1 celery stick, fry in some olive oil until lightly browned, add 1/2 finely chopped chili, 1 l water, 1 bay leave, some black peppercorns, 1 mace, some parsley sprigs, and salt and simmered this until the roasted veggies could come out of the oven. Remove the bay leave, pepper, mace and parsley from the vegetable broth and add the roasted vegetables, 1 rosemary sprig and some lemon. Add a bit of boiling water to the tray on which the veggies were roasting and collect all the yummie stuff and olive oil that came out of the veggies and add to soup. Then boil everything for a little bit until ready to be pureed (my veggies were already super soft when I took them out of the oven, so I only boiled it for about 10 min to give it some of the rosemary flavour). Then I removed the rosemary, pureed everything and added 125 ml cream.

The colour of this soup is much nicer as the veggies and the chili from the broth add a light orange shade to it. I am serving it with some Greek feta instead of goat cheese.

I just wanted to jump in that I made this soup again yesterday with the baby in mind, but of course, also for us. This time, I roasted the vegetables a bit longer until they were almost blistered, to get more color. I wrapped the garlic cloves, unpeeled, in aluminum foil as suggested by Sadaf (#177, thank you!) for the whole time and used one cup less broth. I didn’t use the spices I suggested but still felt it had a much more rich flavor, more intensity and texture.

Wow, we both made this soup yesterday! I decided to go the spicier route and used cumin, chili powder, and red pepper flakes instead of the thyme. I thought a red pepper would go well with these spices, so I subbed it for one of the tomatoes. What a color difference, and it definitely had a kick to it! Other small changes: I added some lemon juice and feta (queso fresca or cotija could be nice with this version) as you suggested, and used less cream. Fantastic soup!

Guess what I made for dinner last night!?!
Husband- who is a food snob but will try anything- liked it as well. I can always tell when the compliments are sincere for my husband will make sure that the leftovers make it to the fridge. Topped ours with feta and fresh cilantro and had it along side an Indian spicy chicken dish.

I made this last night and it went perfectly with the Cauliflower and Parmesean Cake I made the night before, which really DOES taste even better the next day!If anyone had told me a year ago that I’d be eating and loving cauliflower AND eggplant I would have said they were crazy.
Thanks for your awesome work~such an inspiration.

I’ve made a similar soup a few times that was published in my newspaper probably something like 15 years ago. The main difference was no tomatos. The recipe also called for a red pepper puree with balsamic vinegar to be poured in a swirl on top, but I never did try that.

Made this for dinner tonight, and it was fantastic! I took your advice on spices and added about 1.5 tsp. cumin, plus some red pepper flakes for a nice subtle heat. I was out of coriander, so added some turmeric on a whim, which turned the whole thing a bright pumpkin color! Lovely. Nice salty feta on top was just the thing as well.

We tried the spicy version of it (but bumped the spices a bit): 2 tsp. salt, 5 tsp. coriander, 4 tsp. cumin, the juice of 1 1/2 lemons, and 1 tsp. smoked paprika. We used a goat queso fresco for cheese; were we to use a traditional fetal, we’d probably use less salt. Thanks very much– we’ll be making this again.

I’m making this for the 2nd time—I liked the veg. broth the first time…gave it a lovely orange color. I used the spices you advised the first time and loved that, and I used a yogurt/tahini mix instead of cream…loved that too. I also added a splash of balsamic to brighten things up a bit…loved that as well. I’m making this tonight for a crowd as I liked it so well…and as it’s pureed…people will try it and forget that they may or maynot like eggplant…they’ll love this soup though, I know it. :) Oh…I also used the feta topping and plan to do that again…loved the surprises of tangy cheese in most bites.

So, people are complaining about the color. I have to say mine turned out pretty good looking which I think is due to a larger tomato to eggplant ratio. I only used one large eggplant and two big beefy heirloom tomatoes. My other difference from the recipe was whole milk not heavy cream. Only one thing I need to change for next time is less/smaller onion. Everything was delish!
Now I can make two easy soups. I’m thrilled.

I made this last night and it was great. I went with 1 tsp cumin, 2 tsp coriander, and a I blended it with a big dollop of tahini. I’m not a huge fan of the texture of smooth soups so I had mine with toasted sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds and it was great!

I totally made this, too! I didn’t blend, as I like a more “rustic” (read: lazy) style soup. So instead, had everything cubed! Made with 1tsp cumin, 1tsp coriander, 1tsp red pepper, and a sprinkle of smoked paprika and chili powder (my red peppers weren’t enough kick). LOVED it! Esp with some crusty bread.

just made this and devoured two bowls. and am considering a third. this is now officially my favorite use for eggplant! i used 3 cups stock instead of 4 and wrapped the garlic (unpeeled, though) in aluminum foil, per the comments above. also used some 2% milk instead of cream. and sprinkled salt and freshly cracked pepper on the vegetables before roasting, in addition to post-blending. can’t WAIT to make this again! now excuse me while i go address the problem of my empty bowl…

if you roast the garlic unpeeled it won’t burn and it just squishes easily out of the skin when cooked… however the temptation to just spread the result on toast and eat it there and then rather than adding it to the pot can be a bit too great at times!
We’re heading into summer here (New Zealand) and aubergines (sorry, I’m a Brit!) are just getting cheap as the weather is getting hot, however I’ve stashed this recipe away for a colder day – sounds delicious! I’ve made many roasted veggies soups which have always been worth the effort but not tried using aubergine before

My boyfriend doesn’t care for eggplants, but after I saw this soup here I knew I had to make it, even though eggplant season was technically over. I didn’t have time to pick up goat cheese, which would have been amazing, but it came out great regardless. We had a few cups of it left over but the heavy cream separated and it looked so gross the next day!

I have made this soup twice now and love it. I have also gotten rave reviews of it as well. I add a little more garlic cause I love it and the coriander and cumin. Second time I made it I added a can of lentils to make it a little heartier which worked out deliciously. Thanks for a easy and amazing recipe!!

I just made this and after reading some of the comments, I made some changes to amp up the flavor a bit. Along with the tomatoes, eggplant, garlic, and onions, I also went ahead and roasted two bulbs of fennel (but note I did double the recipe). I love the flavor of fennel and thought it might add a nice anise/peppery flavor. I added the cumin and a dash of red pepper flakes, as Deb suggested but something still wasn’t quite right. After pureeing everything with the immersion blender and adding the cream, I searched my spice cabinet for the missing ingredient and then it hit me: TURMERIC! Please, especially if you’re looking for a more Middle Eastern/Indian flavor, add turmeric – I didn’t measure, just added to taste – and it changed the whole complexity of the flavor. It tastes divine and I can’t wait to eat it for dinner with the crusty sesame semolina loaf I picked up at the market. Thanks Deb!

Just thought you’d like to know this soup has made it into our regular winter meal rotation! I do add the cumin and coriander and go light on the cream and it’s great. A roasted carrot and fennel soup recipe came my way right on the heels of this one, so any given weekend is a roasting party in my kitchen. Thanks for another great recipe!

Totally delicious and packed with flavour!!! I made a few adaptations: I used canned whole tomatoes rather than fresh ones and roasted them (hard to find fresh tomatoes worth eating in the middle of January!); I roasted the garlic in tinfoil as suggested above; I added in chilli flakes and cumin with the thyme; I stirred in a cup of navy beans right at the end for a bit of extra protein and to make it a little more filling.

I made this this afternoon- it’s cold here! I sprinkled the vegetables with cumin along with S&P before roasting, then added another tsp or so when simmering. I also subbed a cup of pot liquor from caramelizing a big batch of onions in the slow cooker for some of the chicken broth. It’s delicious! I’ve been sneaking tastes all afternoon. I hope there’s enough left for dinner….

I’ve made this four or five times now, with alterations to be vegan-friendly (so no feta; soy milk instead of cream). My most recent version followed your spice suggestions, adding 1/2tsp cardamom powder, a tiny shake of cinnamon, and 1tsp berbere (an Ethiopian spice mix I had left over from another recipe). I love this soup without the spices and with your suggestions, but I think the berbere and cinnamon add a lot to it! Thanks for a great hearty recipe with a lot of room for experimentation.

Love this site. I made a version of this using curry paste and Asian, non sweet coconut milk and steeped just a ,little lemongrass and Ginger in the veg stock. I got the idea from a little family-owned Thai restaurant near my home in Memphis, where they make a spicy eggplant soup. It was silky and GREAT!

I made this tonight, with vegetable broth and without cream or goat cheese, and it turned out wonderfully. I used more thyme than the recipe called for (probably twice as much), since I needed to use it while it was still fresh, and I also threw in a little dried basil, because we had it in the cabinet.

This soup was amazing! I ate at a restuarant in Boulder, Colorado called Salt that had the best tomato eggplant soup – I wanted to try to make one and I honestly think this turned out even better than the restaurant version!

I’m vegan so I used “shoshana kleiman”‘s advice and substituted tahini paste for the cream. I didn’t measure, just put in a big spoon full, and I also added two dollops of vegenaise, a little bit of unsweetened almond milk, and a sprinkle of arrowroot powder. I then used the immersion blender a second time to really blend in the tahini and vegenaise. I also added a bunch of rosemary in with the thyme, and used a mixture of both red and yellow tomatoes.

Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!! It was so nice to make a soup with all the extras from our vegetable and herb gardens!

I, too, had this delicious soup at the Casino….decided today to try to find some ideas on how to make it..imagine my surprise when I read your 2nd paragragh…thanks for making it so easy……can’t wait to taste it….

Okay, I made this, Deb, and it was literally the best thing I’ve tasted since I emptied the last peanut butter jar. No, but seriously, I gasped and did a little dance when I tasted the finished product.

My variation was just what I said before, a stock flavored heavily with lemon and thyme (and some paprika and black pepper and other seasonings I don’t remember) but I think what really did it was, I added a good tablespoon of sugar to the pot. I also accidentally burned the bottoms of the onions and tomatoes, but left the charred bits in for a, well, charred flavor that really worked. But seriously, it could be the sugar that does the trick, since it brings out the depth and sweetness in the vegetables.

Also, not to be obnoxious, but it really begged me on its knees not to put cream in it, so I didn’t, and was happy. The texture was quite heavy without it, and the flavors would have been dulled by anything besides the goat cheese, which proceeded to melt in and give it all the creaminess it could handle.

Hey, this is a great soup! We have made it twice, and have a few adaptations, which can help give it some verve:

First, we added 1/4 a slice of jalapeno pepper to the roasting vegetables, then removed it after they were done, rather than include it in the soup. It gave the soup a really delicious spiciness without overpowering the other flavors.

I couldn’t wait to make this soup again this year. It’s been too warm outside for September and it finally cooled down tonight, enough that I felt like making soup. With the homegrown tomatoes coming to an end I had what needed to make a batch of this soup tonight! Love it!

I made this soup 2 weeks ago. My family loved it so much that they ate the entire pot of soup that night (honestly; that has never happened before)! We’ve also decided it is a good soup if you are dieting if you keep the cream amounts low and use just a little cheese. I made it again today since it is raining here in New England, and it is a perfect day for having the oven on.
I love your site! Please keep the recipes coming! :)

The one exception to my “I’m not a cook, I’m a baker” rule is soup. I love making soup. I spent an unseasonably cold and rainy Sunday making this last weekend, and my apartment smelled so beautifully welcoming for the next day. I didn’t have thyme, so I subbed in basil and just a tiny sprinkle of fennel seeds. Deb, you are a gift to my (also tiny) kitchen!

This soup is an incredibly satisfying, wonderful way to use my end of the season tomatoes and the eggplants that are coming ripe at once (why did I plant so many?). I made a triple batch (for freezing) took it a little bit in the Indian direction by adding two tsp of curry powder, 2 tsp cumin and 1 tsp turmeric. I started adding these bright spices at first to get rid of the sort of gray color and it came out looking, tasting and smelling beautiful. I also took a whole head of garlic, just chopped of the top with a bit of olive oil and put it cut face down and it roasted the whole time with the other vegies without burning. It got so yummy gooey so I just squished out the garlicy paste into the soup. Instead of goat cheese, topped with a dollop of sour cream and served with warm Nann bread. Hubby loved it so much didn’t end up freezing all that much. Thank you so much for recipe it has prompted my first ever food posting!!

I have to tell you… I know that casino’s (starts with an H) roasted eggplant soup and it is my ABSOLUTE FAV!!! I got online today looking for a similar recipe. It has a lot of garlic and a touch of red pepper. Try more garlic and more red pepper. And thanks for going light on the cream. Tell you mom I’ll meet her there for soup and crablegs!

I made this recipe today with your ideas to add a teaspoon each of cumin, coriander, and red peppers flakes, and it turned out DELICIOUS! Thank you! My guy doesn’t love the seeds from the eggplant, but I thought they were a nice texture to an otherwise creamy soup!

Help! I’ve been wishing and hoping of making this soup for ages, and just when I finally made a plan to do so, I have a last-minute guest coming to dinner. What could I pair this with to give the meal some heft? This is a weeknight, so I’m short on time. Thanks!

I made this over the weekend and it was amazing (it keeps well too). I used beef broth, 1/4 cup cream, 2 teaspoons of cumin and 1 of coriander, lots of pepper, and left out the thyme and goat cheese. Eggplant is my very favorite food and I’m always looking for new ways to try it. Thanks Deb!

First of all, I have been a huge fan of the site for a while now, and this is my first post. If I’m not day dreaming about getting the time and occasion to make your recipes, I’m chuckling at the witty comments or oohing and aahing over the pictures. I know you get this a lot, but thank you for your creativity, inspiration and charm. I made this soup tonight and it was great! I try to avoid dairy, so I added coconut milk instead which added richness without any powerful coconut taste. I also added the cumin, a dash of cayenne and to make a meal out of it I tossed in some cut up smoked sausage from Wholefoods. Great to scoop into Tupperware and bring to work for lunch this week, thanks again!

Hi there,
I’m late, but here’s what I did so that the garlic did not burn – don’t peel it before roasting – just put the whole cloves in the roasting pan. Also, I went ahead and roasted the eggplant (and I added squash too from my CSA) with the spices – hot pepper, cumin, salt, pepper and thyme. I took all of the roasted veg and put into the cuisinart food processor and then dumped into chicken broth – yum, yum and more yum! Thanks for the recipe!

I’ve made this 3 times now exactly as writted except without any cheese at the end. It is insanely delicious! Sure the color is a little unappealing but who cares because the tates makes up for it tenfold!

I found your recipe yesterday and made the soup as outlined for last night’s supper, but WITHOUT the cream and cheese.
Because I wouldn’t be adding the salty cheese at the end, before roasting the veggies, I sprinkled them with fine-ground black pepper, and just a “smidgen” of garlic-salt.
For the chicken stock, I used two tetra packs of purchased chicken broth, so I simmered the soup longer than recommended to reduce.
The end result was DELICIOUS ! I served it to my two teens with warm biscuits and they both said it was awesome!!!
I will be making this again for certain!!
Thanks for your tips and advice!

OK, so I just read this recipe-ergh…two years later. But I just had to make a comment. I had a roasted eggplant and tomato soup at Zoe’s, in Soho, NY, that knocked me over. I have been trying to re-create it and the spices I know they had for sure were fresh rosemary and oregano. Maybe a little thyme, not sure.

OK, so classic, ‘boring’, Italian spices, but really were wonderful. You’ll probably never read this anyway.

I love this soup – I was looking for a way to use leftover curried eggplant (my husband always makes too much!), and the spices are very similar to this recipe. So I puree the leftovers with half and half and vegetable broth – delicious!

I made an adapted version of this last weekend. I added 2 bell peppers and followed your suggestion about adding cumin and chili to the broth. I didn’t use cream but everyone could add a dollop of creme fraiche if he/she wished to. A delicious, flavorful soup. Just another proof how roating really makes a difference. Thanks for the dinner inspiration!

I’ve never come across your blog and I found this site by googling Roasted Eggplant soup. This was after my weekend at Harrah’s in Atlantic City. There wasn’t much that I could eat at the buffet but this soup was simply memorable!!!!

I had this soup yesterday in a hospital snack bar. It is put out by a commercial company called Au Bonne Pain. It was delicious! They also had a turkey chili that was so very good. Has anyone heard of this company? The lady working there showed me the order book. There must have been 50 kinds of soups to order! There is a soup Nazi chef in a local restaurant here. Today she made shrimp potato chowder….to die for! Can you tell I like soups?

Deb, I just recently subscribed after seeing something completely unrelated on reddit and am loving your blog! So here’s what I did with this soup: left out the cream, added a rounded tsp of cumin and coriander powder as you suggested, and then also a 1/4 tsp of pure chilli powder and a 1/4 tsp of ‘birth masala’. I’m not sure if the latter spice is only found in South Africa, I haven’t looked locally, as I get my mom to post it to me. I eat it with roasted garlic naan and am not looking back! YUM! I found, though, that the flavor only improves as it ages – I’m on my third day of eating it (made a big pot just for me!) and it’s the best today!

Hi I just wanted to say thank you for posting this recipe. I made this last night for dinner with some changes. I added pepers both hot and sweet. I left out the cream and added in some cumin, paprika, and oregano. I also added an extra eggplant and extra tomatoes. Thank you for a great base recipe to get started with. My husband and I really enjoyed it and I am look forward to the left overs for lunch today or tomorrow.

This soup turned out great! I wanted more moroccan flavors so used 3 tsps cumin, 2 corriander, and a pinch of smoked paprika. (I also doubled the recipe so doubled that spice amount!). I added the lemon juice and balsamic as well. On top to garnish, I used diced avocado and some mild cheese. The avocado really makes it a winner, as it adds a tang and creaminess. Thanks for all your great recipies, I have really enjoyed them! As an added note I have also used some heavy cream along with some softened cream cheese in the mix too, to thicken it.

I plan on making this tonight as my starter. Love the spice suggestions, and I too often add cubed avocado to soups for added depth and richness. I will probably also add the cream at the end in the soup bowl, then I swirl it right at serving – no one notices the color so much cause the swirl makes it pretty and interesting. I serve the crumbled feta on the side. Thanks! very inspiring.

i love this!
i added a can of tomato paste and it improved the color a lot :) Looks like tomato soup now. Also I placed the cloves of garlic on TOP of the tomatoes while baking them so they never got burnt. ;] thanks

I just made this tonite and while I was looking for the eggplant i knew was in the fridge i also found a freshly picked apple and some roasted pumpkin puree (post-halloween). So i roasted the apple along with the eggplant and threw in the pumpkin after pureeing the roasted vegetables and it was DELICIOUS! The fruit added a natural sweetness.

Excellent Soup. Followed Directions but Made Some Additions.
Added a Teaspoon of Creole Seasonings.
Added to each serving 2 Tablespoons of Lump Crabmeat.
Sprinkled top of serving with chopped shallots.
Put two fried eggplant cubes. (1″) on top of soup for flavor and presentation.
Knockout dish at this Cajun Home in Louisiana. It was served just before we ate a delicious Itallion Eggplant Shrimp Crab Casserole.

Made this soup last night after making your Lebanese stuffed eggplant and not knowing what to do with the eggplant insides. Very good on both counts but a little bit of eggplant overdose…on to other vegetables for a bit!

Thanks for this post and many others! This is my first time commenting, but definitely not my first time using your recipes! I’ve got the soup on the stove, and have added red lentils for protein, your spicy suggestions, and am going to try tahini and lemon to taste.

I made this over the weekend (still seeing great heirloom and graffiti eggplants at the farmer’s market!) and really enjoyed it. I did add the cumin and coriander and they are great! I liked the red lentil suggestion from the comment above – I would do that next time! Thanks for the great recipe!

So, I know I’m joining the party late – but great post, thank you! The level of fun that you find with soup recipes is akin to my excitement for reading board game rules…ugh, why can’t we just play how we want??
There is approximately 2 days out of the year when it’s cold enough in Honolulu that savory hot soup sounds enticing and today is one of them (snow, pleease!). So, the original reason for my post is to respond to your invite about tweaking the recipe… I’m planning on substituting the cream for a few tablespoons of raw pistachio butter – which I just tried last week and it’s amazing! It’s become my new base for making creamy pesto dressing too, and I’m sure will be used for a bunch more foodstuffs when I get around to it too.

Hello! I just wanted you to know that this soup turned out very tasty but I did something a bit different. I honestly didn’t feel like a pureed soup, so I roasted my veg in cubes and did it that way. And it would not have been nearly as tasty without the goat cheese, which made it creamy without adding cream. Thanks I love your recipes and wittiness!

Made this last winter and I just received my organic garden share with tomatoes, eggplant and onions – even a bud of garlic. I roasted all of these and used “Spicy Tuscan Herb mix” that I got when we visited Italy. I am freezing the soup (without the cream) in small containers to break out on those first cool fall nights! I cannot wait. It tastes awesome. The kitchen smells great too! Thanks for your great recipes!

Lo and behold – I got a large enough eggplant and plenty of tomatoes in my CSA box this week plus it’s a typical Bay Area August day (read chilly and overcast) so this is the perfect remedy!! Everything is roasting in the oven as I type and my slow cooker is braising short ribs for a decadent lunch with girlfriends :) Thanks for the recipe(s)!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! I’ve made it several times, all with some variations. It has been a lifesaver with regards to leftover CSA veggies. The first time I made it, I followed the recipe, using your cumin, coriander and red pepper suggestion. Delicious. The other times I’ve used Greek yogurt instead of heavy cream and with some roasted sweet peppers. Tonight I browned some turkey sausage in the stock pot first, removed it and then added it again with the dairy. I didn’t have yogurt or cream so I used a scoop full of alluette. And feta instead of chèvre. So delicious. Thank you for this amazing recipe!

I know this post is over 4 years old now, but I just wanted to say that I’ve been meaning to make this soup for years now. I finally made it, and I can’t believe it took me so long.

This recipe was SO easy and it’s so tasty! I’m an awful cook. I really mean that. I can’t even boil pasta to the right consistency. If that sounds like anyone reading this comment, make this soup! Cutting vegetables in half, sticking them in the oven, tossing them in a pot with some broth and then blending when finished? My kind of recipe.

I’ve been eating this for lunch, and I season it with some everyday seasoning from Trader Joes and a really generous squeeze of a lemon wedge. The lemon makes a HUGE difference. It really brightens the soup and brings out the flavors.

This was delightful w/your Middle Eastern riff of coriander (I ground some up, and then dumped several seed pods into the pot to simmer), cumin, aleppo, lemon to finish and yogurt on top instead of goat cheese. I have to say, the final product is amazing and hearty, but I almost strained out the veggies before blending because the broth was SO flavorful and intense! It’s a lot of work, but that would be a killer vegetable soup broth (I used half chicken stock, half veggie, both unsalted). Also, because the tomatoes are shabby this time of year so I figured they would need a flavor assist, I put in some tomato paste and a bit of roasted red pepper paste, and they took the color from boring mushroom to lovely dark pumpkin.

This soup is amazing. One of the best things I ever made. Someone gave me some eggplant and I had some chicken bone broth I made from a Costco chicken–cooked over 16 hours (corkcpot!). Looked on the web for eggplant and so luckily found your blog. Roasted all the veggies and a can of garbanzos, all coated with balsamic and olive oil. Threw them in the stock with coriander, a Morracan spice blend (Victoria, paprika, turmeric, cayenne, and toasted cumin. I left it chunky. It was delicious plain or with lemon juice or with yogurt. We tried it all 3 ways, and liked all 3.
My husband said to post something. I was delighted to find 6 yrs after your original post, people are still excited about this recipe.

FYI – Next time I would chop the onions and eggplant, but not the tomatoes to bite size before roasting. They will cook faster and they were harder to chop cooked. I used 400 on convection setting and finished them under the broiler. Like you said, keep an eye on the garlic, but also the garbanzos.

I was making this, and then realized I didn’t have any thyme! Instead I used cumin, paprika, a little nutmeg and cloves, some garlic and onion powder… so I totally didn’t follow the recipe, but it was AMAZING. Roasting the eggplant brings out such delightful flavors!!

I know I’m really late to the party, comment-wise, but I wanted to say that this is my favorite soup technique. I tried your recipe on this day 6 years ago and ever since I have followed this routine for most of my soups. I’ve done butternut and acorn squash, bell peppers, just tomatoes, jalapenos, carrots, beets, pretty much everything. And it’s always good! I like to go the warm, spicy route with curry, cumin, and turmeric, but a more herbal approach is good, too. Thank you so much for introducing me to this idea! My fall menus would be lost without it!

This is one of my favorite vegetarian soups to make. It’s really good when you toss in a parmesan rind in with the roasted vegetables, thyme, and stock. Remember to fish it out before pureeing your soup!

I made something like this but used lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, a bit of fish sauce, fresh ginger, onion, garlic, and habanero when making the stock from the bones of leftover rotisserie chicken. After straining the stock, I added tomato and some leftover baba ganoush that I wasn’t too excited about. Lime juice and a bit of rice vinegar went in as well. The stock was quite flavorful as is but the addition of the baba ganoush made a remarkable improvement! Somewhat of a hot and sour soup that went fantastically well with noodles. I used coconut cream instead and no cheese. I was trying to use up stuff in the fridge and soup happened!!

Not sure if my comments went thru yesterday, but I LOVE this soup!!!
I took your suggestion and added cumin and some Chile pepper spice, and a small squeeze of lemon juice.
I only puréed the eggplant pulp with a bit of the broth, left remaining veggies in tact since I like texture.
I omitted the cream, and went for garlic croutons (bless Trader Joe’s, their croutons should be classified as dangerously addictive ) and a dollop of whole milk plain yogurt topped with sliced scallions.
I am in total awe of this soup’s yumm-i-ness
Thank you Deb.

So good and so easy to make! I added some smoked paprika to mine which I think really brought out the flavor of the eggplant. I also used tahini instead of cream, which I liked a lot. Will definitely make again.